KXLY lands a big fish for anchor position

August 6, 1995

By Jim KershnerThe Spokesman-Review

KXLY-Channel 4 has landed a former Seattle and CNN anchor to handle its 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts.

Barry Judge was the main male anchor on KING-TV in Seattle for about four years before being let go at the first of the year. He will arrive on Spokane’s airwaves on Aug. 21, where he will be the co-anchor with Marianne Mishima.

“We think this will change the course, literally, of Spokane’s news,” said KXLY executive news director Michael Espinoza. “We feel we have just added the cherry to the pie.”

Thank goodness he didn’t say pumpkin.

Still, Espinoza has reason to be giddy. It’s unusual for an anchor with so much major market experience to come to Spokane, which ranks about 75th in market size. Before his Seattle stint, Judge was an anchor on CNN for about a year and a half, working as a “floater,” or fill-in anchor, in a variety of slots. Before that, he anchored in Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, Dallas and Palm Beach.

“I’ve been in broadcasting for probably 23 or 24 years,” said Judge by phone from his home in Seattle’s Eastside suburbs. “I’ve been around the block.”

Judge has been on the job market since KING-TV let him go for what he says was “politics,” the typical reason for losing a job in TV. With his credentials, he probably could have gone to a bigger market, but he said he chose Spokane for family reasons. He has a wife and three children, aged 14, 18 and 22, and they all wanted to stay in Washington.

“As my resume indicates, I’ve dragged my family back and forth across the country,” he said. “I have three kids, each born in a different state. It’s like a military family. It’s about time I accommodate my family instead of the other way around.”

Judge replaces Rob Daugherty at 6 p.m. and 11 p.m., but Daugherty and Karen Kelly will continue to anchor the 5 p.m. newscast. Kelly and Mark Wright will anchor the new 11 a.m. newscast.